Tell Me The Truth
by clslovegood47
Summary: When Adrien helps Marinette with his father's latest design contest, he finds a plain black umbrella in her closet.


Hello, lovely readers! This was originally part of an ask game on Tumblr. (Over there my username is gryffindorcls.)

Prompt: Umbrella  
Relationship Status: post-reveal/pre-relationship

I own nothing but the plot.

* * *

"Could you grab the shiny green bolt of fabric from my closet?" Marinette called out.

Adrien hopped off of the chaise and padded across the room. "Sure thing, Bugaboo."

Marinette frantically dug through a box of glittering buttons while she listened to the sound of rummaging and shuffling behind her. After several minutes of searching, she finally found five identical buttons. She threw her head back and breathed a sigh of relief.

"_I may actually finish this project on time_," she thought to herself.

When she had signed up for Mr. Agreste's latest fashion contest, she never expected it to take place on the same day as two big tests at school. She'd experienced time crunches before, but never while creating a design this ambitious.

For this challenge, she was attempting to make a loose button-down blouse with billowing sleeves, and while she only had five hours left to complete the task, she also wanted to hand embroider flowers on the front of the garment. Much to her despair, instead of taking the time to work on her design during her lunch break, she was forced to cram in a last-minute study session in the library with Adrien.

Both of them had been up late the night before fighting Hawkmoth's latest Akuma, and neither of them had felt prepared for their exams come the next day. When she got to school that morning, Marinette was on the verge of hyperventilating. Luckily, Adrien calmed her down by promising to stay by her side and help her for the rest of the day. Ever since they'd learned each other's identities, he'd become her support system both in and out of the mask.

They were partners.

They were best friends.

They were the perfect team.

Having Adrien by her side while she was figuring out how to be the Guardian of the Miracle Box had been a godsend. Pushing aside her feelings for him had been hard, but the friendship that had formed between them after the reveal made it easier for her to accept her status in his life. She was nothing more than his "very good friend".

Nonetheless, she couldn't help but wonder if the feelings he had for Ladybug still existed now that things were different between them. While she knew that he wasn't dating anyone at the moment, she was hesitant to let her feelings come crashing back. Still, there was a part of her that hoped for them to one day become more than just friends.

She shook her head and brushed away the thought. "_It doesn't matter. He's moved on._"

Marinette placed the lid on her button box, opened her desk drawer, and slid the container back into its rightful place. She began to pull out all of her materials and place them next to her sewing machine. As she began to sharpen her rotary cutter, a sense of calm washed over her. For the first time all day, she finally felt like she was going to finish the blouse before the deadline.

After a few minutes of quiet preparation, a loud crash sounded behind her, causing Marinette to whip her head towards the closet. She carefully set down the rotary cutter and rushed over to the cascading pile of fabric and clothing that was now spilling onto the floor. Upon reaching the open door, she was met with the sight of Adrien laying face-down on the ground.

"Ugh, I can't believe I just did that," Adrien groaned, sitting up, "I'm sorry, Princess. I'll help you clean all of this up."

She got onto the floor next to him. "It's alright, kitty. Don't worry about it. Right now I just want to make sure that you're okay."

"I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. I'm a little embarrassed, but otherwise, I'm okay."

"There's no need to be embarrassed."

"But I messed everything up."

"You're joking, right?"

"What?"

She rested her head on his shoulder. "Have you seen how clumsy I am when I'm not wearing spots?"

Adrien laughed. "I guess you have a point."

"Hey!" She gave him a gentle nudge. "You're not supposed to agree with me! You're supposed to say, 'Whatever do you mean, my lady? You are the epitome of poise and grace!', or something like that."

He rubbed his cheek against the crown of her head. "I thought we agreed not to lie to each other."

"I guess."

"You guess? Hmmm...I don't know if I can trust you anymore."

"Fine! You win, but if I have to admit that I'm a klutz, then you have to admit that your jokes are corny."

He pulled away from her and chuckled. "_Meow-ch_! Low blow, Marinette. I thought you liked my jokes."

Marinette rolled her eyes. "Well…"

Adrien crossed his arms. "And remember, you have to tell the truth!"

"Alright, you want the truth?" she teased, "I may like your jokes, but I still think that you have _claw-ful_ timing."

"I can live with that, but you shouldn't have to live with this mess. I'll clean this up. You keep working."

"No." She shook her head. "I can't start the blouse until I have the fabric, and if both of us are looking for it, we'll find it in half the time!"

He smiled. "Look at us! Ladybug and Chat Noir tackling their next monster."

"I'd hardly call this mess a monster."

"My lady, this closet was packed before all this fell onto the floor."

"When you're a designer, you need a lot of stuff. I never know when something from this pile may come in handy when I'm creating something new."

Adrien rummaged through the pile and pulled out a black umbrella. "So you're telling me that you need this umbrella to design clothes."

Marinette lunged towards her partner and snatched the umbrella out of his hands. "I'm going to put this somewhere else."

"Woah, that was a pretty strong reaction towards an umbrella! What is it special or something?"

"No, it doesn't belong in the closet. It must have gotten mixed in when I was cleaning my room the other day."

"My lady?"

"Yes?"

"You're lying to me. Why?"

She hugged the umbrella against her chest. "No, I'm not. Why would you think that I'm lying?"

"Tell me the truth," he pleaded, "Why is that umbrella so important?"

Tears began to brim in the corners of her eyes. "You don't remember it?"

"It looks like a regular black umbrella to me."

"You gave it to me."

"When did I…" He paused. "Wait, is that the umbrella I gave you when we first met?"

Unable to contain them any longer, hot tears began to slide down her cheeks. "It is."

"Oh, my lady, I'm sorry." He leaned over and pulled her into a tight hug. "I didn't mean to make you sad. Please don't cry."

"It's not you...I...I…"

"Does thinking about that day really make you _that _upset? I know we got off to a rocky start, but I didn't realize it was that bad."

"Adrien, that was the best day of my life." Marinette hid her face in his shirt.

"Then why are you crying?" He rubbed soothing circles on her back.

"_You have to tell the truth, Marinette_," her mind screamed, "_You promised._"

"Because it's the day I fell in love with you," she whispered.

He pulled away. "What? Could you repeat that?"

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything."

"No, Marinette, _please_ repeat what you said. I need to hear you say that again. Because if you said what I think you said, this just turned into the best day of my life."

"But I turned you down so many times as Ladybug. I was in love with Adrien, so I said no to Chat. I broke your heart. You moved on! I watched you flirt with Kagami before our identities were revealed. I didn't want to get in the way of you finding happiness."

Adrien cupped her cheeks in her hands. "My happiness has always been with you, my lady. I did try to move on, but my heart kept coming back to you."

She tossed the umbrella to the side and wrapped her arms around him. "I love you, Adrien. I always have, and I always will."

He returned the gesture and pulled her close. "I love you, too, Marinette."

Her heart soared as she allowed herself to melt into his embrace.

"My lady?" Adrien said, breaking the silence that had fallen between them.

She nuzzled her cheek against his chest. "Yeah?"

"As much as I want this moment to never end, don't you have to finish the blouse by eight o'clock?"

She flew out of his arms, grabbed the green fabric from the pile, and stumbled towards her sewing machine. "THE CONTEST!"

"Don't worry about me!" he laughed, "I'll just be over here planning our first date!"

All of a sudden, Marinette didn't care if she lost the contest. In her eyes, she'd already won.


End file.
